Quarter One An Elephant in the Garden By Michael Morpurgo Reason Why I Chose This Book
When I first heard about this reading assignment, I decided I wanted to choose a book that was completely different from books I usually read. I wanted to expand my range of books. I went to the library and headed for the young adult section, and I scanned the shelves. One shelf caught my eye. Most of the books on the shelf were taller and thicker, and this book was wedged in between them. The font on the spine was silver and pretty. It made me curious, so I picked it up. I read the inside cover of the book and decided it was a book that was different from what I usually read. Plus it dealt with history, which I thoroughly enjoy. After reading this book report, I hope you decide to read this fascinating novel, An Elephant in the Garden by Michael Morpurgo.
Genre This book falls into two genres, historical fiction and young adult. The book is historical fiction because it is about a German family and an unexpected companion who try to survive in Germany during World War II. The author really seems to capture what life was like for innocent civilians in Germany. Because we are in the United States, we mainly discuss World War II from our point of view, not that of European countries. We generally assume that Germany is evil because of the Nazis. This book is very insightful because it gives us the perspective of innocent people living in Germany who had nothing to do with the war and the killing of Jewish people. Historical fiction is a newer genre for me, but if it makes you see things from different points of view like this book does, I think it’s a genre I might want to read again.
This book also falls under the young adult genre because it is a retelling of Lizzie’s life as a teenager in Germany during World War II. During this time in her life, she meets a boy along their journey and falls in love, even though the boy is considered an “enemy.” Her conflict about loving the boy and being loyal to her country is a big part of what makes it fall into the young adult category. Throughout the book, she deals with the barrier between her and her true love, and the war which has caused tremendous changes in her life.
Summary One snowy day, when Karl goes with his mother to work at a nursing home, a resident named Lizzie recalls her past when she sees the similarity between Karl and her own little brother, Karli. Lizzie tells them the story about her family’s journey during World War II in Germany.
When warnings about bombing spread throughout the city of Dresden, Lizzie’s life is changed forever. Until then, Lizzie had not been affected by the war, but when her mom, Mutti, brings home a baby elephant named Marlene from the zoo, the truth begins to sink in. The zoo was going to kill all of the animals so they wouldn’t escape in the event of a bombing, but Mutti believed that Marlene should have as much of a chance of surviving as the rest of them. When the dreaded bombing arrives, the family escapes and embarks on a life-changing journey. Along the way, they meet an enemy airman named Peter, and they create a strong bond and become more like a family. Together, they face obstacles as they make their way across Germany to avoid the advancing Russian Army.
Character Analysis Lizzie Lizzie tells her story to the narrator of this book so we see her at two different points in her life, as an old woman retelling her life story and as a 16-year-old girl who is one of the main characters in the story. In the beginning of the story, Lizzie is an old woman in a nursing home who is reminded of her younger brother when the nurse’s son comes to play in the snow. At this point in her life, she is a bit difficult. She has tried to share her story about her elephant before, and the people at the nursing home don’t seem to believe her. “She imagines things. Old people often do that. They get a bit mixed up in the head sometimes, that’s all.”(6) Because people haven’t believed her, it has made her uncooperative. “She could be a little prickly, and even cantankerous with the other nurses sometimes.”(7) She feels a special connection to the narrator, even before she knows that the narrator’s son’s name is the same as her own little brother. The narrator says about her, “She’d told me once, on the very first day she came into the nursing home, 'I might as well be honest with you. I do not like being in here, not one bit. But since I am, and since we shall be seeing rather a lot of one another, then you may call me Lizzie.' ”(8)
The narrator’s son, Karl, is interested in the elephant and in Lizzie’s life before coming to the nursing home, and Lizzie gladly begins to tell him about her journey during World War II. As she starts to tell her story, you can tell she is turning back into the type of person she probably was when she was young. She led a normal life of a teenager before the war changed everything about her. Things for her begin to change when her father is sent to fight in France. When her father first appears in his uniform, Lizzie realizes, “That was how the war began for us, the beginning of our nightmare, or everyone’s nightmare.”(28)
One of the most interesting things about Lizzie is hearing her talk about her feelings about whether or not it is ok to love someone who is considered to be an “enemy”, someone who bombed her own home. Before meeting Peter, her opinion about enemies is different, “…they are brutes. To do this (bomb Dresden) they must be brutes, the Americans, the British, all of them.”(76) When they find Peter lying in the barn, Lizzie reaches a deep understanding, “…I had two beginnings in my life: the moment of my birth, of course, and the moment I set eyes on this man, this airman who I knew had bombed my city, a bomber, a killer, who had caused so much suffering to so many…I understood it completely, and I hated him, and I hoped he was dead. Then he opened his eyes and looked at me, and I knew right away that he was no more of a killer than Papi was.”(98-99) Lizzie realizes that the “enemy” isn’t much different from her own family. From the first moment she set eyes on Peter, she is in love. She feels so torn about it, however, and goes to talk to Marlene the elephant about it, “How wicked it that, Marlene? How wicked is that, to love someone who should be my enemy, who has just bombed my city, killed my friends? How wicked is that?”(112) Once Peter had rescued Karli from the ice, she and Peter learn that they share a special connection, “I knew then in that moment as our eyes met, that he felt for me what I was feeling for him.”(120) Her major change in the story is her realization that people’s needs on both sides of the war are the same, and that people aren’t as different as one may assume.
Peter Peter is an enemy airman whose plane was shot down during the bombing of Dresden. Luckily, he uses his parachute and survives the crash, and he lands on the property of Lizzie’s relatives. He is an important character in this story because it is through him that we are exposed to the other side of the war. Even though he is considered an “enemy,” Peter shows Lizzie and her family that he isn’t much different from them. Peter explains about his love for acting after Lizzie calls her brother an actor, and he says, “He reminds me of me, when I was little. It is what I used to do back home in Canada. Acting, I mean. It was all I ever wanted to do, go on the stage, like my mother before me, and my father. I had just gotten started in Toronto, and then all this happened. Anyway, it will be over soon enough now, and when it is, I’m going right back there, I can’t wait."(107) Most of all, Peter wants to find his way back home to escape the war. Before all of them embark on the journey, Peter tries to make plans with his map and compass to get home, but Mutti wouldn’t allow it. He says, “I have to get home. Surely you can understand that.”(114) Later, when he and Lizzie spend time together, he tells her about the fun weekends he used to spend with his mom and dad. He tells her they had a cabin in the woods where they cycled, canoed, fished, and saw moose and bears. He isn’t a heartless killer but is just like Lizzie’s father, Papi, who was separated from his family and sent off to war.
Peter is very brave and a good leader throughout the book. He rescues Karli from the ice and leads the family on the journey, guided by his compass. When Karli falls through the ice, Peter takes charge and says, “Stay here. It’s all right. I can reach him. Leave it to me.”(117) Peter shows great leadership on the journey because he keeps the family safe and away from harm. Lizzie comments, “Without his compass, and without Peter, I think we would never have made it.”(136) He chooses the right routes and finds food for everyone, “Food was much harder to find. Again, it was Peter who saved our bacon, so to speak.”(146)
Marlene Although Marlene is just a young elephant that doesn’t speak, she is an important character in the story. Before the threat of being shot, Marlene suffers from the loss of her mother. The threat of Marlene being shot angers Mutti, and she tries to get the zoo director to reconsider. When Mutti receives permission to take Marlene home, Marlene becomes part of the family. Marlene is an unexpected friend for Lizzie. They share some moments of silence where they stare into each other’s eyes and have a deep understanding for what the other is feeling. Lizzie says, “We let our eyes do most of the talking, I remember…we were making a friend for life. I did sense in her eyes that depth of the grief she was still suffering after the loss of her mother. And without my every saying anything, I knew she understood all of my own fears, about Papi, about the bombers that might come, any day now, about the war. Marlene was always so accepting and so patient.”(64)
Marlene is an important symbol in the story. She represents hope and the will to survive. After the news of Marlene spreads throughout the city, the talk of the day is no longer about the Red Army or the war, but about Marlene staying in the garden of Lizzie and Karli. In the midst of the worrying about the bombing, Marlene comes as a sign of hope for the people that not everything is lost. And later, when the family is trying to comfort each other after the loss of their home and the missing Marlene, Marlene finds them and surrounds them with her long trunk. Lizzie says, “I think it was Marlene’s sudden, unexpected reappearance that gave us all fresh hope, new strength…”(75) When the journey is at its hardest, Marlene symbolizes the will to survive. Lizzie thinks, “…It was Marlene as much as Mutti’s mantra that kept me going, through the wind and the rain, mud and frost, Marlene just plodded on. She was our pacemaker, and we kept with her.”(149)
Themes The two main themes that run throughout the book are survival and the idea that we are more alike than different. This book is all about survival, and hope is the essence of it. Hope is what pulls each of the characters forward through the story. Survival and hope come in many forms throughout the book, the letters from Papi, the elephant, the encouragement from Mutti, the compass, the ringing of the bells. The letters from Papi are placed on the mantel in their home and give the family hope that Papi will return to them after the dreadful war is over. Marlene’s will to survive gives them hope. She continues on the path even when the conditions are rough, and this gives them hope to move forward. When the journey is at its hardest, Mutti tells Lizzie, “This is the last time we look back, Elizabeth. From now on, we only look forward.”(88) This gives them hope about the future and encourages them to keep moving forward on the journey. The compass is a guide and gives them hope that they will make it to their final destination. Lastly, the ringing of the bells in the newly constructed Dresden is a remembrance of the bombing in World War II. “Every time I hear a ring of bells, it makes me think the same thing, that there is hope, that life goes on.”(135) Despite the fact that the ringing remembers something terrible, it also brings hope to the survivors that good things will come.
The idea that we are more alike than different is an important theme in this book, as well. Both sides of World War II are represented in this story. Peter represents the Allies, and the family and the countess represent the Germans. When two people or countries are at war, it is easy to think bad things about the enemy. Like all prejudices and stereotypes, once you get to know the enemy personally, you realize you have a lot more in common than you think at first. In the beginning, Lizzie believes that their enemies are brutes and heartless killers because of what they did to Dresden. When they get to know Peter, they realize that they are very similar. “We found we had so much in common – bicycling, boating and fishing.”(144) Peter and Karli both enjoy acting, and they both believe that the war isn’t doing anyone any good. Peter is half Canadian and half Swiss, and the countess tells Peter that she had a nephew that was about his age who was half American and half German. “My American nephew would have been about your age. It is sad, so ironic, so stupid.”(169) Her nephew went to war for the Americans and was killed by the Germans. She sees that mistake could easily be made again when we don’t realize how alike we all are.
Main Conflict The major conflict in the story is whether or not to trust Peter. When they first arrive at their relatives’ house, they find an enemy airman in the barn lying in the hay. Mutti is angered by the sight of him because of what he did to their city. At one time, Mutti believed that the enemy was just as bad as they were. “If they hate us, Karli, it is because we have also bombed their cities. What we are seeing now is a world full of brutes, all intent on killing one another.”(76) The sight of the airman, however, causes so much anger and hate in Mutti, that she feels the urge to kill him with a pitchfork. The airman, named Peter, is sympathetic toward her and explains that he didn’t know the bombing would cause such devastation in the city and that he realized that the war was causing “hell on earth.”(101) Despite him trying to be helpful, Mutti still doesn’t trust him, and instead, treats him like a prisoner. She makes Peter stay at the kitchen table, and she holds a pitchfork just in case he decides to do something radical. Mutti also forbids him to talk to the Lizzie and Karli, but that didn’t stop them. They talk, and Peter shows them his compass that would eventually take him home to Canada. Mutti takes the compass away from him and tells him “Without it you are not going home, you are not going anywhere.”(109)
Soon, Mutti's opinion changes about Peter when Karli falls through the ice. Karli doesn’t know how to swim, and Mutti can’t get out onto the ice to save him. Peter comes to the rescue and gets Karli out of the ice water and into the house where Peter gives Karli CPR, which saves his life. Mutti goes deep into thought about what has happened and begins to think she can trust Peter. Suddenly, when the police arrive and ask whether or not they have seen a parachutist, we see that Mutti trusts Peter when she tells them there has been no sign of him, and that Peter is her son who has asthma and can’t fight in the war. When Peter tries to thank her, Mutti says, “From now on, no more sorrys, and no more thank-yous. What is done is done. The past is behind us. You are family now, one of us.”(128) From then on out, they all trust each other and travel together to escape the Russian army and to find the American army.
Symbolic Image These four rings and the elephant represent important components of the story. The order starts at the top and continues around clock-wise. The Ring of Truth represents the truth and believability of Lizzie’s story. Lizzie is recalling real events from her past that allow her to tell her story in the present. The Ring of Fire represents the bombing of Dresden. The bombing was accompanied by massive fire that erupted all throughout the city and engulfed the city in flames. The bombing entirely wiped out the city of Dresden. The Ring of Steel represents Peter’s compass. The compass is what guides the family on the journey. Without it, the journey could have had a totally different outcome, and Lizzie may not have lived to tell the tale. The Ring of Bells represents the bells that ring in the churches of the newly built Dresden. After the bombing, Dresden has been rebuilt, and every year, on the anniversary of the bombing, they ring all of the church bells. Finally, the elephant represents the journey the family took, the hope and the will to survive.
New Vocabulary Cantankerous
Ex. She could be a little prickly and even cantankerous with the other nurses sometimes. ~ pg. 7
Definition: hard to cooperate with; grouchy
Gramophone
Ex. “We had a gramophone at home, a windup one with a big trumpet – you do not see them like this anymore, only in antique shops – and so Marlene Dietrich’s voice was always in the house.” ~pg. 19
Definition: record player
Uncanny
Ex. “The likeness between you is – how is it you say it? – uncanny.” ~ pg. 29
Definition: unbelieveable
Vindictive
I never thought people could be that angry, that vindictive. ~ pg. 99
Definition: wanting revenge
Camaraderie
I found that once we laughed together for a while, we all began to feel there was a kind of refugee solidarity among us, a camaraderie, sometimes so much so that we did not just swap stories, but food and drink as well. ~ pg. 140
Definition: strong friendship
Similar Works This book reminds me of a book I have read called The Book Thief, written by Markus Zusak. They both have similar qualities like taking place in Germany, being told by a young girl, undergoing a journey, and learning valuable lessons. Similarly, The Book Thief's plot takes place in Germany during World War II and is told from the perspective of a young girl, Liesel Meminger. Liesel lives outside Munich with her foster family. As the book suggests, Liesel steals books because to her, they are everything. After her foster father teaches her to read, she shares her books with the neighbors around her during the long, terrible bombing raids and the Jewish man that the family shelters in their basement. Liesel’s journey in the book is finding that reading can free the mind from worries. This book gives a perspective on how life was like for young, innocent people during the war in Germany. Liesel was just a young girl who enjoyed reading, but her house got bombed even though she wasn’t part of the war. It shows that not everyone in Germany was a blood thirsty killer, but that some people were just as innocent as people on the Allied side of the war. The idea that not everyone is as different as they seem runs throughout both novels, and both novels also give a perspective on life in Germany during World War II.
An Elephant in the Garden
By Michael Morpurgo
Reason Why I Chose This Book
When I first heard about this reading assignment, I decided I wanted to choose a book that was completely different from books I usually read. I wanted to expand my range of books. I went to the library and headed for the young adult section, and I scanned the shelves. One shelf caught my eye. Most of the books on the shelf were taller and thicker, and this book was wedged in between them. The font on the spine was silver and pretty. It made me curious, so I picked it up. I read the inside cover of the book and decided it was a book that was different from what I usually read. Plus it dealt with history, which I thoroughly enjoy. After reading this book report, I hope you decide to read this fascinating novel, An Elephant in the Garden by Michael Morpurgo.
Genre
This book falls into two genres, historical fiction and young adult. The book is historical fiction because it is about a German family and an unexpected companion who try to survive in Germany during World War II. The author really seems to capture what life was like for innocent civilians in Germany. Because we are in the United States, we mainly discuss World War II from our point of view, not that of European countries. We generally assume that Germany is evil because of the Nazis. This book is very insightful because it gives us the perspective of innocent people living in Germany who had nothing to do with the war and the killing of Jewish people. Historical fiction is a newer genre for me, but if it makes you see things from different points of view like this book does, I think it’s a genre I might want to read again.
This book also falls under the young adult genre because it is a retelling of Lizzie’s life as a teenager in Germany during World War II. During this time in her life, she meets a boy along their journey and falls in love, even though the boy is considered an “enemy.” Her conflict about loving the boy and being loyal to her country is a big part of what makes it fall into the young adult category. Throughout the book, she deals with the barrier between her and her true love, and the war which has caused tremendous changes in her life.
Summary
One snowy day, when Karl goes with his mother to work at a nursing home, a resident named Lizzie recalls her past when she sees the similarity between Karl and her own little brother, Karli. Lizzie tells them the story about her family’s journey during World War II in Germany.
When warnings about bombing spread throughout the city of Dresden, Lizzie’s life is changed forever. Until then, Lizzie had not been affected by the war, but when her mom, Mutti, brings home a baby elephant named Marlene from the zoo, the truth begins to sink in. The zoo was going to kill all of the animals so they wouldn’t escape in the event of a bombing, but Mutti believed that Marlene should have as much of a chance of surviving as the rest of them. When the dreaded bombing arrives, the family escapes and embarks on a life-changing journey. Along the way, they meet an enemy airman named Peter, and they create a strong bond and become more like a family. Together, they face obstacles as they make their way across Germany to avoid the advancing Russian Army.
Character Analysis
Lizzie
Lizzie tells her story to the narrator of this book so we see her at two different points in her life, as an old woman retelling her life story and as a 16-year-old girl who is one of the main characters in the story. In the beginning of the story, Lizzie is an old woman in a nursing home who is reminded of her younger brother when the nurse’s son comes to play in the snow. At this point in her life, she is a bit difficult. She has tried to share her story about her elephant before, and the people at the nursing home don’t seem to believe her. “She imagines things. Old people often do that. They get a bit mixed up in the head sometimes, that’s all.”(6) Because people haven’t believed her, it has made her uncooperative. “She could be a little prickly, and even cantankerous with the other nurses sometimes.”(7) She feels a special connection to the narrator, even before she knows that the narrator’s son’s name is the same as her own little brother. The narrator says about her, “She’d told me once, on the very first day she came into the nursing home, 'I might as well be honest with you. I do not like being in here, not one bit. But since I am, and since we shall be seeing rather a lot of one another, then you may call me Lizzie.' ”(8)
The narrator’s son, Karl, is interested in the elephant and in Lizzie’s life before coming to the nursing home, and Lizzie gladly begins to tell him about her journey during World War II. As she starts to tell her story, you can tell she is turning back into the type of person she probably was when she was young. She led a normal life of a teenager before the war changed everything about her. Things for her begin to change when her father is sent to fight in France. When her father first appears in his uniform, Lizzie realizes, “That was how the war began for us, the beginning of our nightmare, or everyone’s nightmare.”(28)
One of the most interesting things about Lizzie is hearing her talk about her feelings about whether or not it is ok to love someone who is considered to
be an “enemy”, someone who bombed her own home. Before meeting Peter, her opinion about enemies is different, “…they are brutes. To do this (bomb Dresden) they must be brutes, the Americans, the British, all of them.”(76) When they find Peter lying in the barn, Lizzie reaches a deep understanding, “…I had two beginnings in my life: the moment of my birth, of course, and the moment I set eyes on this man, this airman who I knew had bombed my city, a bomber, a killer, who had caused so much suffering to so many…I understood it completely, and I hated him, and I hoped he was dead. Then he opened his eyes and looked at me, and I knew right away that he was no more of a killer than Papi was.”(98-99) Lizzie realizes that the “enemy” isn’t much different from her own family. From the first moment she set eyes on Peter, she is in love. She feels so torn about it, however, and goes to talk to Marlene the elephant about it, “How wicked it that, Marlene? How wicked is that, to love someone who should be my enemy, who has just bombed my city, killed my friends? How wicked is that?”(112) Once Peter had rescued Karli from the ice, she and Peter learn that they share a special connection, “I knew then in that moment as our eyes met, that he felt for me what I was feeling for him.”(120) Her major change in the story is her realization that people’s needs on both sides of the war are the same, and that people aren’t as different as one may assume.
Peter
Peter is an enemy airman whose plane was shot down during the bombing of Dresden. Luckily, he uses his parachute and survives the crash, and he lands on the property of Lizzie’s relatives. He is an important character in this story because it is through him that we are exposed to the other side of the war. Even though he is considered an “enemy,” Peter shows Lizzie and her family that he isn’t much different from them. Peter explains about his love for acting after Lizzie calls her brother an actor, and he says, “He reminds me of me, when I was little. It is what I used to do back home in Canada. Acting, I mean. It was all I ever wanted to do, go on the stage, like my mother before me, and my father. I had just gotten started in Toronto, and then all this happened. Anyway, it will be over soon enough now, and when it is, I’m going right back there, I can’t wait."(107) Most of all, Peter wants to find his way back home to escape the war. Before all of them embark on the journey, Peter tries to make plans with his map and compass to get home, but Mutti wouldn’t allow it. He says, “I have to get home. Surely you can understand that.”(114) Later, when he and Lizzie spend time together, he tells her about the fun weekends he used to spend with his mom and dad. He tells her they had a cabin in the woods where they cycled, canoed, fished, and saw moose and bears. He isn’t a heartless killer but is just like Lizzie’s father, Papi, who was separated from his family and sent off to war.
Peter is very brave and a good leader throughout the book. He rescues Karli from the ice and leads the family on the journey, guided by his compass. When Karli falls through the ice, Peter takes charge and says, “Stay here. It’s all right. I can reach him. Leave it to me.”(117) Peter shows great leadership on the journey because he keeps the family safe and away from harm. Lizzie comments, “Without his compass, and without Peter, I think we would never have made it.”(136) He chooses the right routes and finds food for everyone, “Food was much harder to find. Again, it was Peter who saved our bacon, so to speak.”(146)
Marlene
Although Marlene is just a young elephant that doesn’t speak, she is an important character in the story. Before the threat of being shot, Marlene suffers from the loss of her mother. The threat of Marlene being shot angers Mutti, and she tries to get the zoo director to reconsider. When Mutti receives permission to take Marlene home, Marlene becomes part of the family. Marlene is an unexpected friend for Lizzie. They share some moments of silence where they stare into each other’s eyes and have a deep understanding for what the other is feeling. Lizzie says, “We let our eyes do most of the talking, I remember…we were making a friend for life. I did sense in her eyes that depth of the grief she was still suffering after the loss of her mother. And without my every saying anything, I knew she understood all of my own fears, about Papi, about the bombers that might come, any day now, about the war. Marlene was always so accepting and so patient.”(64)
Marlene is an important symbol in the story. She represents hope and the will to survive. After the news of Marlene spreads throughout the city, the talk of the day is no longer about the Red Army or the war, but about Marlene staying in the garden of Lizzie and Karli. In the midst of the worrying about the bombing, Marlene comes as a sign of hope for the people that not everything is lost. And later, when the family is trying to comfort each other after the loss of their home and the missing Marlene, Marlene finds them and surrounds them with her long trunk. Lizzie says, “I think it was Marlene’s sudden, unexpected reappearance that gave us all fresh hope, new strength…”(75) When the journey is at its hardest, Marlene symbolizes the will to survive. Lizzie thinks, “…It was Marlene as much as Mutti’s mantra that kept me going, through the wind and the rain, mud and frost, Marlene just plodded on. She was our pacemaker, and we kept with her.”(149)
Themes
The two main themes that run throughout the book are survival and the idea that we are more alike than different. This book is all about survival, and hope is the essence of it. Hope is what pulls each of the characters forward through the story. Survival and hope come in many forms throughout the book, the letters from Papi, the elephant, the encouragement from Mutti, the compass, the ringing of the bells. The letters from Papi are placed on the mantel in their home and give the family hope that Papi will return to them after the dreadful war is over. Marlene’s will to survive gives them hope. She continues on the path even when the conditions are rough, and this gives them hope to move forward. When the journey is at its hardest, Mutti tells Lizzie, “This is the last time we look back, Elizabeth. From now on, we only look forward.”(88) This gives them hope about the future and encourages them to keep moving forward on the journey. The compass is a guide and gives them hope that they will make it to their final destination. Lastly, the ringing of the bells in the newly constructed Dresden is a remembrance of the bombing in World War II. “Every time I hear a ring of bells, it makes me think the same thing, that there is hope, that life goes on.”(135) Despite the fact that the ringing remembers something terrible, it also brings hope to the survivors that good things will come.
The idea that we are more alike than different is an important theme in this book, as well. Both sides of World War II are represented in this story. Peter represents the Allies, and the family and the countess represent the Germans. When two people or countries are at war, it is easy to think bad things about the enemy. Like all prejudices and stereotypes, once you get to know the enemy personally, you realize you have a lot more in common than you think at first. In the beginning, Lizzie believes that their enemies are brutes and heartless killers because of what they did to Dresden. When they get to know Peter, they realize that they are very similar. “We found we had so much in common – bicycling, boating and fishing.”(144) Peter and Karli both enjoy acting, and they both believe that the war isn’t doing anyone any good. Peter is half Canadian and half Swiss, and the countess tells Peter that she had a nephew that was about his age who was half American and half German. “My American nephew would have been about your age. It is sad, so ironic, so stupid.”(169) Her nephew went to war for the Americans and was killed by the Germans. She sees that mistake could easily be made again when we don’t realize how alike we all are.
Main Conflict
The major conflict in the story is whether or not to trust Peter. When they first arrive at their relatives’ house, they find an enemy airman in the barn lying in the hay. Mutti is angered by the sight of him because of what he did to their city. At one time, Mutti believed that the enemy was just as bad as they were. “If they hate us, Karli, it is because we have also bombed their cities. What we are seeing now is a world full of brutes, all intent on killing one another.”(76) The sight of the airman, however, causes so much anger and hate in Mutti, that she feels the urge to kill him with a pitchfork. The airman, named Peter, is sympathetic toward her and explains that he didn’t know the bombing would cause such devastation in the city and that he realized that the war was causing “hell on earth.”(101) Despite him trying to be helpful, Mutti still doesn’t trust him, and instead, treats him like a prisoner. She makes Peter stay at the kitchen table, and she holds a pitchfork just in case he decides to do something radical. Mutti also forbids him to talk to the Lizzie and Karli, but that didn’t stop them. They talk, and Peter shows them his compass that would eventually take him home to Canada. Mutti takes the compass away from him and tells him “Without it you are not going home, you are not going anywhere.”(109)
Soon, Mutti's opinion changes about Peter when Karli falls through the ice. Karli doesn’t know how to swim, and Mutti can’t get out onto the ice to save him. Peter comes to the rescue and gets Karli out of the ice water and into the house where Peter gives Karli CPR, which saves his life. Mutti goes deep into thought about what has happened and begins to think she can trust Peter. Suddenly, when the police arrive and ask whether or not they have seen a parachutist, we see that Mutti trusts Peter when she tells them there has been no sign of him, and that Peter is her son who has asthma and can’t fight in the war. When Peter tries to thank her, Mutti says, “From now on, no more sorrys, and no more thank-yous. What is done is done. The past is behind us. You are family now, one of us.”(128) From then on out, they all trust each other and travel together to escape the Russian army and to find the American army.
Symbolic Image
These four rings and the elephant represent important components of the story. The order starts at the top and continues around clock-wise. The Ring of Truth represents the truth and believability of Lizzie’s story. Lizzie is recalling real events from her past that allow her to tell her story in the present. The Ring of Fire represents the bombing of Dresden. The bombing was accompanied by massive fire that erupted all throughout the city and engulfed the city in flames. The bombing entirely wiped out the city of Dresden. The Ring of Steel represents Peter’s compass. The compass is what guides the family on the journey. Without it, the journey could have had a totally different outcome, and Lizzie may not have lived to tell the tale. The Ring of Bells represents the bells that ring in the churches of the newly built Dresden. After the bombing, Dresden has been rebuilt, and every year, on the anniversary of the bombing, they ring all of the church bells. Finally, the elephant represents the journey the family took, the hope and the will to survive.
New Vocabulary
Cantankerous
- Ex. She could be a little prickly and even cantankerous with the other nurses sometimes. ~ pg. 7
- Definition: hard to cooperate with; grouchy
Gramophone- Ex. “We had a gramophone at home, a windup one with a big trumpet – you do not see them like this anymore, only in antique shops – and so Marlene Dietrich’s voice was always in the house.” ~pg. 19
- Definition: record player
Uncanny- Ex. “The likeness between you is – how is it you say it? – uncanny.” ~ pg. 29
- Definition: unbelieveable
Vindictive- I never thought people could be that angry, that vindictive. ~ pg. 99
- Definition: wanting revenge
CamaraderieSimilar Works
This book reminds me of a book I have read called The Book Thief, written by Markus Zusak. They both have similar qualities like taking place in Germany, being told by a young girl, undergoing a journey, and learning valuable lessons. Similarly, The Book Thief's plot takes place in Germany during World War II and is told from the perspective of a young girl, Liesel Meminger. Liesel lives outside Munich with her foster family. As the book suggests, Liesel steals books because to her, they are everything. After her foster father teaches her to read, she shares her books with the neighbors around her during the long, terrible bombing raids and the Jewish man that the family shelters in their basement. Liesel’s journey in the book is finding that reading can free the mind from worries. This book gives a perspective on how life was like for young, innocent people during the war in Germany. Liesel was just a young girl who enjoyed reading, but her house got bombed even though she wasn’t part of the war. It shows that not everyone in Germany was a blood thirsty killer, but that some people were just as innocent as people on the Allied side of the war. The idea that not everyone is as different as they seem runs throughout both novels, and both novels also give a perspective on life in Germany during World War II.
Good Reads Review
Here is the link to my Goodreads review: An Elephant in the Garden
Quarter Two